More regarding Rich Hailey's post involving analysis of National Practitioner Data Bank information. This fact sheet from Americans for Insurance Reform also seems to debunk the contention that the average malpractice awards are going higher:

New insurance industry data and analysis, released today, shows that the average medical malpractice insurance payout, or closed claim, has been only $28,524 over the last decade. Payouts in 2001 follow the same low pattern. This figure includes all jury verdicts, settlements and other costs used by insurers to fight claims in court.

Moreover, medical malpractice insurers are paying nothing in 77 percent of all claims filed; in the 23 percent of cases where insurers pay anything, the average claim is only $107,587. According to the Harvard Medical Practice Study, only one in eight malpractice victims ever files a claim for compensation.

The analysis, conducted for Americans for Insurance Reform (AIR) by actuary J. Robert Hunter, Director of Insurance for the Consumer Federation of America, examined insurance data through 2001, the most recent year available from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and A.M. Best and Co.

Here's a chart of the raw data used to come to this startling conclusion. If true, can we push for a minimum threshold for malpractice awards?

And yes, I know that this group is an anti-tort reform group. However, who else is going to be wading through this kind of dry data?